1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a vehicle seat, especially a motor vehicle seat, which has a backrest which is pivotable towards the seat. More particularly, the invention relates to a locking mechanism for such seats.
2. Description of the Prior Art
DE 32 22 758 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,999,247 disclose mountings for such seats. The use of free-swinging devices, e.g., a locking element in the form of a hook or a latch makes it possible to tilt the backrest of the seat forward without needing to activate the adjustment device for the inclination of the backrest. This locking element is pivotably mounted at the mounting and can be activated through a pulley arrangement. The hook is associated with a pin which it can grip rearwardly and the latch is associated with a catch which can receive its free end. In order for the hook to rearwardly grip the pin and allow the latch to fall into the catch, a sufficiently large tolerance or functional play must be provided between the interacting parts. As a result of this play, the backrest has a certain freedom of motion even when the interlock device is in its locked position. This freedom of motion produces a rattle when the seat is not being used. More importantly, with these known free-swinging devices, even where the backrest has been completely swung back into its end position the backrest may not be securely locked in position. For example, the spring force applied to the hook or the latch may not be sufficient to swing the hook or the latch into its locking position. If the backrest is not locked, serious injury can occur in case of an accident.